Tech Tips

Mastercam Software License Issues and Advice A few years ago, Mastercam made the move to software licensing. With this change from hardware license devices, there are a few things to know when working with the new style licenses. Updating your Mastercam software license is a completely different process compared to what was previously done with the hardware keys. You will no longer be given a code file to update the license. Instead, you will receive [...]

There is a new Apply button feature available in Mastercam’s Mill toolpaths that allows you to preview cutting motion, resulting in streamlined toolpath creation. In the past, when programming options like multi-passes, you needed to take an educated guess at the number of passes required to cover the area we were machining. In Mastercam 2022, you were able to use the Preview Toolpath button to see the cutting motion before exiting the dialogue. Now, in [...]

What are the benefits of upgrading a 2D mill or router seat to 3D? The Mastercam products referred to as 2D and single surface 3D allow some limited 3D machining, however, they can be updated at any time. This upgrade is referred to as Multi-surface 3D and it adds significant capabilities beyond just the multiple-surface 3D machining capability including: Stock awareness that prevents wasted time in “air cuts” Multi-thread processing for efficient multi-tasking Seamless integration [...]

Mastercam 2023 now gives you choices for mapping colors identically or independently in the main interface and the Mastercam Simulator often referred to as Mastercam Verify. In previous versions of Mastercam, color mapping in the main interface was completely independent of the Simulator and was also tied to the simple 256-color palette of Windows. However, the Simulator uses the HTML color palette which, while it supports many more color definitions, uses a different naming convention [...]

There is a new feature in the Mastercam 2023 Multiaxis Deburr toolpath that allows you to more easily program your models. Typically, when using the deburr toolpath, you would need to modify your models to remove the modeled chamfers in order to program to a sharp corner. Now, with the latest Mastercam release, there is a new option available when using automatic edge detection called Include Unsharp Edges. Here’s how to use it. In the [...]

This blog post will cover a new Mastercam 2023 Tool Axis Control strategy for the multiaxis toolpaths called Tilt Relative to Reference Surface. In previous versions of Mastercam, you needed to utilize the Clean Core machining method to achieve this style of tool axis control. This meant creating a simplified surface under the part to drive the tool axis control and then offsetting the toolpath using a collision control strategy. This added a substantial amount [...]